Spin-orbital polarons in electron doped copper oxides

Present work demonstrates the formation of spin-orbital polarons in electron doped copper oxides, that arise due to doping-induced polarisation of the oxygen orbitals in the CuO$_2$ planes. The concept of such polarons is fundamentally different from previous interpretations. The novel aspect of spin-orbit polarons is best described by electrons becoming self-trapped in one-dimensional channels created by polarisation of the oxygen orbitals. The one-dimensional channels form elongated filaments with two possible orientations, along the diagonals of the elementary CuO$_2$ square plaquette. As the density of doped electrons increases multiple filaments are formed. These may condense into a single percollating filamentary phase. Alternatively, the filaments may cross perpendicularly to create an interconnected conducting quasi-one-dimensional web. At low electron doping the antiferromagnetic (AFM) state and the polaron web coexist. As the doping is increased the web of filaments modifies and transforms the AFM correlations leading to a series of quantum phase transitions - which affect the normal and superconducting state properties.Comment: Please cite this article as: A. Kusmartseva, H. Yu, K. Jin, F.V. Kusmartsev, Spin-orbital polarons in electron doped copper oxides, Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials (2017), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmmm. 2017.11.02

Building Momentum to Sustain Social Change Evaluation of the of Katrina Women's Response Fund

In the time that has passed since powerful hurricanes decimated the Gulf Coast region in 2005, the recovery and rebuilding process continues to expose the deep vulnerabilities of a society that has not effectively addressed the legacy of racism. In response to the injustices, human suffering, destruction, and massive displacement caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Ms. Foundation for Women, WFN and its partner funds, with the $1.3 million support of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, continued to strengthen the Katrina Women's Response Fund (KWRF)

SELF ORGANISATION AS A TOOL FOR DIAGNOSIS OF INNOVATIVE ECOSYSTEM DOI: 10.5585/RAI.2010681

Several studies have been conducted to identify innovative mechanisms for the successful development of various innovative regions. The scope of the current research is to shed light on this issue, taking into account the theory of self-organized systems and the principal properties of free-scale networks. Using Silicon Valley as an example, the author demonstrated the majority of self-organized systems, thus determining what traits, working principles and laws should be available for use in innovative system. “Self-organization” as a key characteristic of an innovation ecosystem coupled with prerequisites, supports the growth of Silicon Valley and would be recommended as a model to be utilised in countries and regions across the world

A Multinational Study of the Etiology and Clinical Teleology of Moral Evaluations of Patient Behaviors

This dissertation is a collection of four studies which collectively explore a hypothesized construct of ‘moral evaluation of patient behaviors’ (MEPB) as a driver of health professionals’ readiness to interact humanistically with their patients. In these studies, ‘humanistic interactions’ refer to the non-technical, intangible skills and factors of clinical competence; the factors specifically explored in these studies were compassion toward patients, self-efficacy for treating patients, and optimism toward patient treatment. For the purpose of specificity, all factors were examined as they pertained to patients with substance use disorders. Survey data from a convenience sample of 524 health professionals (i.e. physicians, nurses, and other health professionals) from three culturally distinct areas of the world (i.e. California (n = 173), urban France (n = 102), and urban China (n = 249)) were analyzed using analyses of variance, Welch’s t-tests, confirmatory factor analyses, and structural equation models. Results indicate: 1.) Psychometric support for the survey tool that was created for the assessment of the hypothesized construct of MEPB among health professionals, and information on differences on this hypothesized construct by age group, occupation, and country of residence; 2.) Indication that this survey tool operates differently among health professionals in different countries, which supports the notion that people from differing cultures have differing notions about morality. 3.) In the California sample, results indicate that while moral judgements of patients’ behavior carries mixed associations with factors of health professionals’ readiness to interact humanistically with these patients, moral judgements of the self (or, moral self-image) have only positive associations with factors of this readiness for humanistic interaction. This finding supports the notion that having a healthy self-concept strengthens one’s ability to support others. 4.) In all three countries, moral evaluations were positively associated with optimism toward treating patients, and in urban China, they were additionally positively associated with compassion and with self-efficacy. Given weak measurement invariance (i.e. differences in the operation of the measurement of moral evaluations by country), more research is needed in this area. The current research provides a tool for examining research of just this nature, and most importantly suggests that morality does not need to be eliminated from perspectives of mental illness or addiction, but rather that more nuanced moral perspectives are needed. Future research may explore distinctions between moral appraisals and stigma, and associations between moral evaluations (both among health professionals and among patients) and clinical/health outcomes such as rates of relapse and recovery

Eu3+ multicenter formation and luminescent properties of Ca3Sc2Si3O12:Eu and Ca2YScMgSiO12:Eu single crystalline films

The work is dedicated to the investigation of Eu3+ multicenter formation and luminescent properties of Ca3Sc2Si3O12:Eu (CSSG:Eu) and Ca2YScMgSiO12:Eu (CYMSSG:Eu) single crystalline film (SCF) phosphors, grown by liquid phase epitaxy method onto Gd3Ga2.5Al2.5O12 (GAGG) and Y3Al5O12 (YAG) substrates, respectively. We have found notable differences in the luminescent properties of CSSG:Eu and CYMSSG:Eu SCFs caused by the Eu3+ multicenter formation in both garnets due to the different local surrounding of Eu3+ ions in the dodecahedral positions by the non-isovalent Sc3+/Mg2+ and Si4+ cations in the octahedral and tetrahedral positions of garnet hosts, respectively. A feature of the Eu3+ center creation in CYMSSG:Eu garnet in comparison with CSSG:Eu counterpart is the possibility of localization of Eu3+ ions in dodecahedral sites of both Ca2+ and Y3+ cations. However, based on the obtained results, we have presupposed preferable localization of the Eu3+ ions mainly in the Y3+ positions of this garnet

Enhanced stability of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in biological media using a pH adjusted-BSA adsorption protocol

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) are widely used for biological applications due to their unique properties compared to their bulk counterparts, simplified SPIONs stabilization protocols applicable for a wide spectra of biological media remains a challenging issue. In this work, SPIONs with different surface coatings, tetramethylammonium hydroxide-coated SPIONs (T-SPIONs), and citrate-coated SPIONs (C-SPIONs) were synthesized by a facile, rapid and cost effective microwave-assisted method. C-SPIONs show robust stability in biological media of phosphate buffered saline and Roswell Park Memorial Institute Medium, while destabilize in DMEM. T-SPIONs were found to aggregate rapidly and significantly in all tested media. Then, a modified pH adjusted-BSA adsorption protocol and an addition of excess trisodium citrate dihydrate (Na3Cit) were used to enhance their stability in the media. The BSA adsorption protocol showed great efficiency in stabilizing the dispersed state of both SPIONs in the tested media, while the addition of excess Na3Cit showed limited effect, and it was only applicable for C-SPIONs. The formed BSA layer on SPIONs could be imaged by negative staining TEM, and revealed by Cryo-TEM, FTIR, DLS, and the zeta potential measurements. Results indicated that BSA forms a monolayer of a thickness of about 3 ± 1 nm and BSA interacts with C-SPIONs and T-SPIONs through their coating, rather than by replacing them. This synthetic method and stabilization protocol offer a general methodology to obtain SPIONs with a variety of surfactants, stable in different biological media in few minutes. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media.Acknowledgments The research leading to these results has received funding from the People Program (Marie Curie Actions) of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007-2013) under REA grant agreement n8 303630 and cofounded by the European Social Fund. Authors acknowledge the funding from Spanish Ministry of Economy MAT 2012-35324, COST Action MP1202 and Ramon y Cajal grant RYC-2010-06082 (AL), China Scholarship Council fellowship (SMY, 201206150053).Peer Reviewe